Super Quiz. 4 TH Grade

Transcription

1 Super Quiz 4 TH Grade The SUPER QUIZ is the most exciting event of the Academic Challenge because, for the first time, you will compete as a team with your friends to answer the questions. TEAM SIGN UP Each team can have 5 students. You decide who is on your team. You can also pick a Team Name. Use the sign-up sheets to register your team. Give the sign-up sheets to your teacher. WHAT IS THE SUPER QUIZ? On the day of the Super Quiz, you will sit with your team members around a table. Each student will have a Scan Tron sheet (just like our other tests). You will be asked 10 questions. Everyone will answer the questions on his or her own. At the end each question, the correct answer will be given and the number of correct answers will be added up. The team with the most correct answers will win a trophy. If an individual answers 8 out of 10 questions correct, the student will win a medal. WHAT ARE THE QUESTIONS ABOUT? The 10 questions of the Super Quiz will be about ASTRONOMY. This packet contains all the information you need to study. The Geography questions will review the States and Capitals from our first event. The 3 rd Grade Astronomy questions will focus on our MOON and questions will be taken from this packet. Good luck, have fun and study hard. The SUPER QUIZ will be held on Saturday, April 25 in the gymnasium at Orville Wright Middle School.

2 Our Moon Orbiting around Earth at an average distance of 238,857 miles (384,392km) is our constant companion, the Moon. The Moon goes through phases that make it look a little different every night. But it s always there, working hard for Earth. It makes the tide go in and out. It lights up the night. And it s been the subject of stories, legends, poems, and songs since way, way back. The Moon is marvelous. And there s way more than meets the eye. The Moon is Earth's only natural satellite, which means the Moon orbits the earth all year long. Earth has many man-made satellites orbiting it too. NASA The Moon Rocks The Moon is about one-third the diameter of Earth. It s made of rock, like Earth. In fact, all the elements that make up Moon rocks can be found on Earth too. These include oxygen, silicon, magnesium, iron, calcium and others. How do we know what Moon rocks are made of? Scientists have analyzed 382 kg of Moon rocks and dirt that astronauts have brought back to Earth. That s how they also know that the Moon is about the same age as Earth. Source: Page 1 of 6

3 Covered with Dust Covering the Moon s surface is a thin layer of dust. The dust has been falling through the spaces between planets for millions of years. Because the Moon has no atmosphere, there is no weather and no erosion. So what s rocky stays rocky, and what s dusty stays dusty. The footprints left by astronauts walking on the Moon in 1969 are exactly the same now as they were then! How Was the Moon Formed? Many scientists believe that the Astronaut Edwin Buzz Aldrin was one of the first humans to walk on the moon and he photographed the footprint he left in the lunar soil. NASA Moon is a huge chunk of Earth. They think that back when Earth was just forming, a Mars-sized meteor smashed into it. The crack-up hurled material out into space, and that material became the Moon. Other scientists think the Moon formed elsewhere in the solar system. Somehow it got sucked into Earth s gravitational field. But since no one was around back then to see it happen, no one knows for sure how the Moon came to be. Source: Page 2 of 6

4 Earth and Moon in Step When we look up at the Moon, we always see the same rocky face reflecting the sun. We never see the other side, or dark side, of the Moon. This is called synchronous rotation. It means Earth and the Moon are turning together, as if they re dancing to the same music. Ancient Oceans? Well, Sort of When we look at the Moon, we also see wide, smooth, dark places. Scientists used to think these were ancient oceans and actually named the areas mare From Earth we can only see one side of the Moon, sometimes called the near side. The photo shows the other side of the moon, the far or dark side we never get to see. NASA/JPL Latin for sea. These places go back to the time millions of years ago when the Moon was not solid rock. It had a hot liquid center. In weak places of the crust, lava would blast through, forming volcanoes and mountains. When the Moon got whacked hard enough by a meteoroid or asteroid the crust would break. More lava would ooze up and out into a smooth pool. Then it would cool down. So those large, dark places are oceans, in a way. They re seas of cooled lava. Craters are the Pits We can also see holes and canyons on the Moon s surface. These pits are old scars from asteroids and meteors that smacked into the Moon and exploded. Source: Page 3 of 6

5 The largest crater on the Moon is also the largest crater in the entire solar system. It s called the Aitken Crater, and it is found at the south pole of the Moon. It measures 2500 km in diameter and is 13 km deep. The far side of the Moon has lots of craters because it faces open space. The side of the Moon facing Earth has fewer craters. That s because our planet protects it from falling space debris. The far side of the Moon has many craters. This particular crater is 80 kilometers (50 miles) in diameter! NASA Why don t we have craters on Earth? We do have a few. But our atmosphere makes most flying space objects burn up before they can crash into us and make a dent. Where s the Water? There is no water on the Moon, but scientists think there may be small areas of ice. Comets and meteoroids can leave ice behind after a collision. Usually the Sun hits these ice patches and breaks them down into hydrogen and oxygen atoms, which escape into space. But there are some areas of the Moon that are always in shadow. If ice has collected there, it may still be there. Source: Page 4 of 6

6 The Moon s Orbit and Phases It may seem like the Moon changes shape, but it really doesn t. What changes is the amount of the Sun s light reflected on the Moon as it moves around us. That s why it looks different night to night. Here s an example. When the Moon is between the Earth and the Sun, its daylight side is turned away from us. We can t see anything. This is called the new moon. As it keeps turning around Earth, more and more surface becomes visible. Finally, the entire sunlit side is visible. This is called a full moon. It takes our Moon about a month (29.5 days) to orbit around Earth. It also takes about a month (27.3 days) to rotate on its own axis. What Does the Moon Have to Do with Ocean Tides? Earth and the Moon have been in a wrestler-hold of gravity for as long as time. Earth pulls on the Moon and keeps it in orbit, but the Moon also pulls on Earth. When it pulls on the oceans, the water bulges out toward the Moon. When the water bulges up, we get high tide. When it bulges away we have low tide. Source: Page 5 of 6

7 Moon Facts The Moon is about 384,392 km (238,857 miles) from Earth. It is about one-third the diameter of Earth. The Moon s surface is made of rock covered with a thin layer of dust. There is no atmosphere and no wind to disturb the surface of the moon. The Moon s gravitational pull is what creates tides in the oceans on Earth. There are 162 known moons in our solar system. Jupiter has at least 63. How We See the Moon We always see the same side of the Moon from Earth. We can see holes and craters on the Moon. These are places where asteroids and meteors crashed into the surface. Largest crater (on the Moon and in our entire solar system): Aitken Crater, 2500 km in diameter and 13 km deep. When the Earth moves between the Moon and the Sun it is called a lunar eclipse. Orbit and Phases of the Moon The Moon looks like it changes shape every night, but really what is changing is the amount of light reflected onto it by the Sun. The Moon takes one month, 29.5 days, to rotate around the Earth. It takes a little less than a month, 27.3 days, for the Moon to rotate on its axis. Studying the Moon Galileo was the first to describe the surface in detail in 1610 using a telescope. Modern technology has allowed us to send spacecrafts and people to the Moon. o 1959 The Soviet Union sent Luna 2 into orbit around the Moon. o 1969 The United States sent the first humans to the Moon on Apollo 11. o 1994 U.S. spacecraft Clementine mapped the surface of the Moon. o 1998 U.S. spacecraft Lunar Prospector mapped the surface in more detail. NASA has plans to create a Moon Base for people as early as Source: Page 6 of 6